Reel for wire



Oct. 16, 1962 B. D. ABEL 3,058,688

REEL FOR WIRE Filed Oct. 26, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet l a Barry D. Abel INVENTOR.

l4 8 BY Fig 4 ME/ Oct. 16, 1962 B. D. ABEL 3,058,688

REEL FOR WIRE Filed Oct. 26, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 2 Barry D. Abel INVENTOR.

BY @Mm WWW EM United States The present invention relates to an expansible and contractible reel of improved construction which is expressly, but not necessarily, designed and adapted for use by an electrician performing a so-called house-wiring job.

An object of the invention is to provide a reel construction wherein the reel, or as it is most frequently described, the spool, is characterized by pivotally mounted folding units capable of being temporarily folded or collapsed into compact form so that the coil of insulated wire may be readily placed by hand in its coil state concentrically around the hub, after which said units may be spread or expanded to assume their normal coil holding and wire paying-out position.

In carrying out a preferred embodiment of the invention a portable stand is provided. This stand embodies a suitable base or frame. The latter is of openwork form and the components thereof may be temporarily nailed on the floor to assume a stationary position. The base is provided with an upstanding fixture having bearings, said bearings adapted to accommodate a spindle or journal portion of upright means.

The upright means is novel in that it is fashioned from bendable rod stock, in fact from a single rod. The rod is bent upon itself between its ends to provide an upper U-shaped portion the upper arm or limb of which constitutes an axle and forms a part of the hub of the reel or spool. The lower portion of the rod is vertical and provides the aforementioned journal and is consequently journaled for rotation in the bearings provided therefor. The invention also features a simple L-shaped or equivalent bracket having vertical and horizontal arms with the horizontal arm terminating in a guide eye, said eye being properly lined up with the reel so that the windings of wire may be threaded through the eye and payed out while being properly guided.

Reverting to the reel as an entity in itself this is of an improved construction in that it is made up of a plurality of generally H-shaped leg frames or units, the arms or legs of these units being pivotally mounted on the axle provided therefor. At least two of the units are connected together by coil springs of suitable strength which springs normally spread the units into circumferentially spaced radial reel-forming relationship. However, the springs allow the units to be collapsed or folded into compact form for application of the coil of wire. Then, too, the cross members of the units are linked together by a flexible chain which chain serves to assist in maintaining the units in uniformly spaced ready-tooperate relationship.

Other objects, features and advantages will become more readily apparent from the following description and the accompanying illustrative, but not restrictive drawings.

In the drawings wherein like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the views:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective of a reel construction constructed in accordance with the principles of the invention and showing how the same is made and set up for use, the coiled wire being omitted for clearness of illustration.

FIG. 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows.

FIG. 3 is a section on an enlarged scale taken on the plane of the section line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a section of a fragmentary type on the horizontal line of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a view of the structure shown in FIG. 2 showing how the H-shaped units or leg frames of the reel or spool are collapsed and are readied to enable the user to apply the coil of electricians or current conducting wire.

In the drawing the reel or spool per se is denoted by the numeral 8 and this is of the aforementioned foldable or expansible and contractible type (see FIG. 5), the stand is characterized by a portable base 10 temporarily nailed on the floor A, said base comprising an openwork frame and supporting the upright means 12.

With respect to the base it may be said to be essentially T-shaped in plan in that the two principal angle iron members are secured together in right angular relationship. The main angle iron has a horizontal flange 14- with nail holes to permit use of nails 16 in nailing down the frame. The vertical flange is denoted at 16 and attached thereto and at right angles therefrom is the second shorter angle iron d8 forming the T. The diagonal braces are simple strap members 20 and these are secured at their ends to the end portions of the main angle iron and also the shorter angle iron 18. The braces if desired are also provided with nail holes for nails or equivalent fasteners 22. Centrally disposed upon and rising perpendicularly from the horizontal base frame is an adapter fixture 24. This comprises a short angle iron having flanges 26 and 28. The lower extended end portion .30 of the flange Z6 is welded or otherwise fixed to the intermediate portion of the main angle iron as shown in FIG. 1. The lower edge of the shorter flange 20 is welded to the upper part of flange 16. The generally square cleats 32 and 34 have bearing holes 36 therein vertically aligned.

As before mentioned, the upright means 12 is a unitary part preferably constructed from a length of rod stock of suitable cross-section. The upper portion of the rod is of general U-shaped form and provides a lower horizontal arm 38, an upper horizontal arm 40 functioning as an axle or shaft and a vertical bight or connecting portion 42. Extending down from the lower arm 38 is a vertical portion 44 which constitutes a spindle or journal and this is obviously mounted for rotation in the bearings 36 provided therefor. This permits the upright means to rotate to the most convenient angle to facilitate pulling or drawing the wire (not shown) from the reel 8. It would be :within the purview of the invention to fix the so-called journal or spindle to the adapter fixture 24 and to simply nail down the base frame at the desired spot especially where the wire is being pulled off in a straight direction.

Before taking up the detailed construction of a novel expansible and contractible reel or spool 8 attention is directed to the numeral 46 which designates a generally L-shaped wire guiding bracket. This itself is constructed from a length of wire and has a vertical limb or leg 48 with a ring 49 at the bottom mounted on the left hand end portion of the axle 40 and held against endwise displacement by a shoulder nut 50 on the axle (see FIG. 3). The ring is held in this position by a coil spring 52 and stabilizing washers 54, the spring surrounding the axle and the washers being on opposite sides of the ring 49 in the manner shown. The horizontal leg 56 terminates in a guide eye 58 through which the convolutions or coils of the wire pass. In other words, the free end of the wire is simply threaded through the eye 58 and the wire is unreeled by pulling it by hand in an obvious manher.

The aforementioned reel or spool 8 is of novel con struction and is therefore described in detail. It com prises four similarly constructed H-shaped members or units made of flat strap metal or the like, there being two upper units to the left and right as denoted at 69 and 62 in FIG. 1. The arms or legs of these units are denoted at 64 and are separately referred to because the outer end portions thereof are connected by coil springs of suitable strength, the springs being denoted at 66. The ends of the springs may be provided with hooks 68 engageable with eyes or openings provided therefor; or clevises may be provided as shown in the larger view in FIG. 5 to permit the hooked ends of the springs to be separably attached. In any event the springs are such that they contract and draw the two H-shaped units or frames 60 and 62 together. The arms 64 are hingedly mounted for free turning on the axle in the manner shown in FIG. 3. The two lower companion units are also H- shaped and are conveniently denoted at 70 and 72. Here the arms or legs 74 are again constructed and hinged at their inner ends on the axle. The free ends of all of the arms may be flared outwardly as at 77 to facilitate applying and removing the coil of wire. Also, the several H- shaped units or frames have cross members integral therewith as denoted at 76 with the cross members provided with clevises or equivalent members 78 to which portions of assembly and retaining flexible chains 80 are linked. Thus the chains are limiting or stop elements and regulate the spread apart radial circumfercntially spaced relationship of the respective units 60, 62, 70 and 72. As the drawings show by comparing FIGS. 1, 2 and 5, the four units can be folded or collapsed and this is permitted by the springs which may be dropped down to the loose or lax position shown in FIG. 5. With the parts thus folded or contracted it is an easy matter to slip the coiled insulation wire in position whereupon the units are again restored to their reel forming relationship and whereupon the cross members 76 now provide the hub for the coiled wire. The reel hub includes the axle 40, the spacing sleeve 82, suitable washers 84 and other assembling components as the drawings show.

It is reasonable to assume that if the reader will familiarize himself with FIG. 1 and then look at FIG. 5, the overall construction, purpose and objectives of the invention will be clear. The base or frame is such that it can be nailed at any desired place on a floor or other foundation or support (not shown). Naturally, it will be fastened in a place of vantage so that the electrician in pulling the wire oif the reel will be somewhere near the nailed down position of the stand. If it is necessary to exert a pull upon the wire in a somewhat out of line manner the U-shaped upright means or standard 12 will rotate to position the reel 8 accordingly. The reel 8 is free to turn on the axle. Consequently the free end of the wire is threaded through the eye 58 and since the bracket 46 is free to function in any suitable direction the eye and reel combine in promoting the paying-out step, in an obvious manner. It is permissible to separably join the spindle 44 to the adapter fixture 24 by a cotter key or the like so that it can be dismantled. In fact, the reel 8 can be slipped otf of the axle 40. As to the manner in which the thus interconnected components 8, 10 and 12 function, this is self-evident and a more detailed description is believed to be unnecessary.

With further reference to the spring 52, this member has two purposes; first, to hold the wire guide stable and, secondly, to serve as a tension brake for the reel. During trial runs, the reel seems to run away with itself because of the weight of the wire. However, introducing and using the spring 52 as shown, corrected the condition.

Minor changes in shape, size, materials and rearrangemeat of components may be resorted to in actual practice without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A collapsible reel comprising in combination a supporting shaft, a plurality of reel forming members rotatably mounted on and extending radially outwardly from said shaft, each of said members comprising a pair of spaced parallel arms having apertured inner ends rotatably receiving said shaft and a cross bar secured rigidly to and extending between said arms at points adjacent to but spaced inwardly from their outer ends, a pair of tension springs connecting together the outer end portions of the respective arms of two adjacent reel forming members, and lengths of chain connecting the cross bars of the other reel forming members together and to the cross bars of said two adjacent members, said lengths of chain being connected to said cross bars midway between the ends of the latter.

2. The device as defined in claim 1 wherein the outer end portions of the arms of each of said members are outwardly divergent.

3. The device as defined in claim 1 together with a spacer sleeve positioned on said shaft between the inner ends of the respective arms of said members.

4. The device as defined in claim 1 wherein said cross bars are provided with apertures having end links of said lengths of chain anchored therein.

5. The device as defined in claim 1 together with an angulated limb having an inner end rotatably positioned on said shaft at one side of said reel and provided at its outer end with a guiding eye for material to be wound on or unwound from the reel, abutment means provided on the shaft for said reel and for the inner end of said limb to prevent the same from sliding apart axially of the shaft, and a compression spring positioned on said shaft between the inner end of said limb and said reel for frictionally resisting rotation of the limb and reel.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 372,473 Kimball Nov. 1, 1887 450,837 Kirby et al Apr. 21, 1891 483,830 Buchanan Oct. 4, 1892 653,717 Wardwell July 17, 1900 821,999 Frost et al May 29, 1906 1,074,553 Maitland Sept. 30, 1913 1,108,726 Eichhoff Aug. 25, 1914 1,315,764 Dowdall Sept. 9, 1919 1,504,417 Beavers Aug. 12, 1924 2,039,915 McCoy May 5, 1936 2,463,192 Mackey et a1. Mar. 1, 1949 2,476,176 Blanton July 12, 1949 2,536,931 Harward Jan. 2, 1951 2,596,766 Dugdale May 13, 1952 2,625,344 Flansburgh Jan. 13, 1953 2,631,793 Riess Mar. 17, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 6,628 Great Britain Mar. 13, 1897 464,914 France Jan. 24, 1914 281,247 Germany Dec. 28, 1914 144,920 Great Britain June 24, 1920 681,194 Great Britain Oct. 22, 1952 

